Earlier this month, I got a message from good friend and talented musician and
producer, Marc Meriläinen. He wondered if I would be
interested in checking out some indigenous electronic pop from the Canadian
artist STOiK. I love listening to new types of music and trust Marc as knowing
talent when he hears it. I couldn’t wait to check out STOiK’s debut album, Pareidolia.

Reading
STOiK’s biography is quite interesting. According to their website and
Facebook page, STOiK lives in the future – 2042, to be
exact. It is in this time that the Earth becomes uninhabitable and humans are
forced to leave. Those that refuse, most of whom are Indigenous, move underground and their
descendants survive through the use of ancient knowledge and practice. STOiK is
a group of Indigenous artists and warriors who live in this future. Led by Gidochige, which translates to “He plays music” in
Anishinaabemowin, the group
performs Indigenous EDM with hints of Pow Wow Techno.

Before I
write the rest of this review, I should give you a little background regarding
my introduction to indigenous music. For two years in elementary school, I had
a teacher named Mrs. Ruth Levine who was very much into the arts and history.
While other classrooms were being taught what wonderful things our country did
for the Native Americans, we were being taught the truth, inspired to read more
about what people coming to this country did to those who were indigenous to the
land. She took us to the Museum of Natural History Native American exhibits,
introduced us to artwork like sand painting, Navajo weaving and more. Most
importantly to this article, she introduced us to the music of Native
Americans. I have been a student ever since, absorbing all I can.

As an adult,
I crave more of the arts, focusing more on the music that inspired me so greatly
as a kid and how that music has evolved. Thanks to Marc Meriläinen, I have met
a number of artists in the Canadian music scene and have always enjoyed the
music he has pointed me towards. STOiK’s brand of music is a tad different from
some of the stuff I have been listening to, though Alissa
Skorik’s stuff did
contain some bits of techno in there. From the first track of STOiK’s
Pareidolia, I was hooked. The album contains a mix of instrumental and
lyrical tracks beginning with Earth Abides. That first track is
instrumental, mixing techno sound, indigenous beats and the singing I remember
so well from the music my teacher introduced me to as well as from Pow Wows I
have actually been lucky enough to attend over the years.

The lyrical
tracks span the scope on topics from love to destruction to the need for
awareness in a world that is slowly dying. Most of the lyrical tracks feature
the beautiful voice of Aleah Belle. Though I loved them all, most poignant
among those tracks are How's That Sound?, featuring Plex and Aleah Belle,
and Behold a Pale Horse, featuring
Jahkota, Plex and
Drezus.

How’s That Sound? may be a song based on
the future that STOiK has described for itself, but I see it as more of a
warning to the world today: “You can do what you want with the flowers / You
can do what you want with the trees / You can do anything to the water / So long
as it doesn’t affect me / And I tried speaking to you with reason / All you do
is keep pulling me down / Tell me what good is having money to spend / When
there’s no longer nobody around? / How’s that sound?” Basically, it’s
saying, “Attention corporations and
governments who don’t care about the
pollution, the destruction of our water supplies and the trees you keep taking
down to make room for more industry and dwellings – you say it’s too expensive
to operate in a way that leaves a smaller carbon footprint, but what good is
that money you save going to be once the Earth you live on is destroyed?”
The rap in this track is awesome, discussing how we are rapidly destroying our
world, both physically and socially.

Behold a Pale Horse has a bit of the
beat and Indigenous song from the first track on the album, but the rap is what
is most important here. The lyrics discuss what has been done to the Indigenous
people and the world we live in. It’s an anthem for the descendants, telling
them to wake up, stop letting the government hold you down, learn from the
elders and become someone who can make a difference for your people and your
world. It’s important to listen to what they are saying in this song – the
indigenous people were very cognizant of Mother Earth and the bounty they had
been given. They took care of the earth and only hunted what they needed. Then
others came and overhunted, polluted and took what they wanted, holding the
Indigenous down, often steering them down poor paths, letting them believe they
had no better choice. This song is empowering. It’s not exactly a call for
rebellion, but it is a call to awareness and a need to find a greater path.

Much as I loved the lyrical tracks on this album, Pareidolia is so much
more and I loved every single instrumental piece on this album. ELE
reminds me of Return to Innocenceby
Enigma…it has that soothing quality
of the background wind with the synths. New Green is another one of
those tracks that mixes Indigenous percussion with some awesome synths. If you
don’t find yourself bobbing your head or perhaps wanting to get up and dance to
some of the instrumental tracks on this album, you just don’t know how to enjoy
music.

I’m
so glad that Marc steered me towards STOiK and their debut album, Pareidolia!
What an amazing debut!